Vilkaviskis during the First World War
The Great War in Vilkaviskis"
"In 1915, the world as the residents of Vilkaviskis knew it was torn apart. Sandwiched between the retreating Russian Empire and the advancing German Army, the town became a theater of war. Most families were forced into a desperate exile, leaving behind the streets we’ve mapped in our 1914 directory. These seven photographs—captured mostly by the occupying forces—are rare windows into a community clinging to its identity amidst the chaos of the Eastern Front."
The Scene: This photograph captures the "Old World" of Vilkaviškis just as it was about to fracture. The signage above the door—written in the Cyrillic alphabet (ТОРГОВЛЯ) and bearing the name of the owner, Ch. Eishishskiy—reminds us that until 1915, the town was a vital frontier outpost of the Russian Empire.
The People: Notice the blend of civilian and military life. Local Jewish residents stand alongside soldiers of the Russian Imperial Army (identifiable by their gymnastyorka tunics and peaked caps). At this moment, these soldiers were the town's defenders against the nearby Prussian border. Within months, however, the escalating conflict of the Great War would force many of the families pictured here—and those listed in our 1914 Tax Index—to flee deep into the Russian interior.
"The ruins of the railway water tower, 1915. Once a vital part of the town's connection to the outside world, it was destroyed during the heavy fighting as the front line swept through Vilkaviškis. It stands here as a silent witness to the beginning of the Great Exile, when thousands of residents were forced to flee along these very tracks."
New Management: The Deutsches Haus (1915–1918)
The Scene: With the Russian retreat in 1915, Vilkaviškis was absorbed into the German military administration known as Ober Ost. The town was renamed Wylkowyszki, and its most prominent buildings were requisitioned to serve the needs of the occupying forces. This building, labeled as the Deutsches Haus, was converted into an Officers' Mess— a social club and dining hall for the German command.
The Transformation: The presence of the German soldiers standing formally in front of the building signifies the shift from the fluid, civilian border life seen at Ch. Eishishskiy's shop to a strictly regulated military regime. During this period, the German authorities took control of local resources, implemented new travel restrictions, and requisitioned supplies from the very merchants listed in our 1914 Tax Index.
The Survival of the Town: While the "Deutsches Haus" served the occupiers, the residents of the town continued to live in its shadow. The families who remained had to navigate a new language and new laws, all while the war continued to rage on the Eastern Front. This era of occupation would last until 1918, when the collapse of the German Empire allowed for the birth of an independent Lithuania and the eventual homecoming of those who had fled.
German troops receiving bread and rations in the courtyard of the Vilkaviškis Synagogue complex. This photograph highlights the collision of military occupation with the town's most sacred communal spaces during the Great War.
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Generations in the shadow of war: Local Jewish elders in dialogue with German occupying forces. This image captures the quiet, daily tension of life under military rule, where two vastly different worlds met on the streets of Vilkaviškis."
The faces of the future: Three children standing in the synagogue courtyard. Despite the occupation and the requisitioning of communal spaces, life for the families of Vilkaviškis continued, rooted in the sacred ground of their ancestors.